#MagnificentManMonday - Ahmad McDougle

Ahmad McDougle

"The elevator to success is not working, so you will have to take the stairs." - Zig Ziglar

Ahmad was born in New York, New York but spent his childhood between Paterson, NJ and Parsippany, NJ.  After graduating from Parsippany High School, Ahmad traveled down south to Grambling State University where he studied Criminal Justice.  He furthered his education at GSU by receiving a Master’s Degree in Public Administration with an emphasis in State/Local Government Administration and Public Management. Ahmad found his interest in Community Development during graduate school where the root causes and effects of urban blight were discussed at length.

His first job in the field was with the State of New Jersey, Department of Community Affairs (NJDCA) Housing Assistance Program.  It was there that he realized that subsidizing rents and mortgages only address a fraction of the problem, given the limited resources available to the public. That was the turning point, after some years of experience with the Division of Housing and working with non-profits pro-bono, Ahmad has now moved up into the position of Affordable Housing Community Developer/Grant Administration for NJDCA.  While employed with the division, he has secured and administered over $150 Million in grant funding and developed over 1500 units of affordable housing.

Advice to young individuals entering the field of Community Development:

(1)  First and foremost, find a mentor to help you navigate through the field, as there are many peaks and valleys. It would be very prudent to have a person who is successful in the field teach you the methods they employed to obtain their success. I am thankful to have several mentors, whom I lean on for advice and constructive criticism.

(2)  Second, use your free time wisely to educate yourself, “Knowledge is Power”. There will always be a new concept, rule, regulation or practice that you will be required to be familiar with in this constantly evolving field. As a community developer, you will deal directly with the public, listen to their concerns and their aspirations for their community. That input will be essential to developing your physical plan to improve communities of need.

Challenges Ahmad had to overcome:

The acquisition of respect amongst my colleagues. As a Grant Administrator you will supervise CEOs, COOs, Executive Directors, and Presidents of non-profit and for-profit entities. All responsibilities will be time sensitive, so the slightest hint of inaction can be detrimental to the entire project. If an individual or principal agent of an organization lacks respect for you, that lack of respect translates to push back and alternative methods to undermine your authority. That focus on undermining your authority, instead of project development, will quickly turn a viable project to a stalled project then ultimately to failed project.  There are very few young people in the upper echelons of management, and there are even fewer people of color. So, you will have to earn your respect every day, you will have to be knowledgeable, astute, stoic and resilient. As time passes, people in the field will become aware of your abilities, and your reputation will precede you. At that point you can excel, however you must remain steadfast to the qualities that allowed you to attain that level of respect. One misstep can result in irreparable damage to your reputation, and second chances are non-existent in this field.

Advice from my father:

Nothing in life of any value is given, it's always earned. So, it is wise to embrace your failures with the same zeal that you embrace your successes. There’s a certain education that can only be gained through failure. Every failure will prepare you for the next level in your life progression.